During a timeout, Seattle Prep boys basketball coach Mike Kelly had told Fenner to expect Nelson-Henry to get the ball.

So Fenner waited. The inbounds pass was low. He jumped in front, stole the pass and flipped in a layup to give the Panthers a 42-40 victory over the fifth-ranked Kangaroos in the semifinals of the Sea-King 3A District Tournament Thursday at Bellevue College.

“I read it like a book,” said Fenner, a 6-foot-6 junior guard and son of former Seahawks running back Derrick Fenner. “It’s huge. We’re fighting for a district championship.”

Seattle Prep (20-5) plays Rainier Beach at 6:30 p.m. Saturday in the title game at Bellevue College. Lake Washington (19-5) plays O’Dea at 11:30 a.m. for third and fourth.

Before scoring the winning basket, Fenner tied the game with a fadeaway jumper in the paint.

“He went on a 4-0 run,” Kelly said. “I thought the biggest thing he did was stay engaged in the play.”

The Panthers needed Fenner’s heroics after Lake Washington went on an 8-0 run in the fourth quarter. The Kangaroos took a two-point lead after Nelson-Henry’s put-back with 18.2 seconds left, giving his team its first lead since early in the second quarter. Fenner, who finished with 13 points, found an answer.

Sophomore Josh Martin scored 16 of his game-high 20 points in the first half, including the first seven for Seattle Prep. He was a big part of a 13-0 run to end the half that gave his team a 10-point lead.

“Sometimes you get a feel for kids in the locker room,” Kelly said. “It was funny, I was talking to the coaches and said, ‘Either Josh is too goofy and this is going to be horrific or he just might be more ready to play than any kid I’ve ever seen.’ From the start, he had a little more intensity and a little more bounce to his step.”

Other boys semifinal

Rainier Beach 49, O’Dea 47

Marquis Davis’ layup with 52.8 seconds left gave Rainier Beach a one-point lead and Anrio Adams knocked down one of two free throws with 15.9 to play, helping the top-ranked Vikings hold off No. 8 O’Dea.

Lakeside’s Kaylee Best knocked down a pair of free throws with 12.2 seconds left to help the Lions upset No. 5 Cleveland. Best scored 13 and Danielle Estell added 14 to lead Lakeside (19-6), which faces Franklin in Saturday’s 8:15 p.m. district title game at Bellevue College. Cleveland (19-5) plays Seattle Prep for third-fourth place at 1:15 p.m. Saturday.